Theatre audiences have been spoilt throughout 2017 with a diverse range of programming from West Yorkshire Playhouse, The Grand, City Varieties, The Carriageworks, Stage@Leeds and more.

From dance to drama, musical to monologue, here are just some of the shows you shouldn't have missed throughout the year.

15. Aladdin the Rock 'n' Roll Panto

Monkey business from Georgina Field and Jacobean villainy from Dan Bottomley. Credit: Anthony Robling.

The Rock ’n’ Roll pantomime continues to be an essential tradition at the intimate City Varieties theatre, capitalising on the Music Hall’s cosy and magical Victorian surroundings.

Action-packed, bawdy and brimming full of mirth, merriment and magic, Aladdin is a compact collection of non-stop hits which will appeal to all ages. If you’re intending to see one pantomime this year, ensure it’s Aladdin.

Leeds City Varieties Music Hall: 24th November 2017 – 7th January 2018.

Glitzy and glamorous, yet sleazy with a decidedly dark undertone, Thoroughly Modern Millie is a razzle-dazzle evocation of the roaring Twenties. Oozing charm, sass and style, this is a musical which delivers plenty of song and dance for your dollar.

12. The Who's Tommy

Conceived as a concept album and subsequently adapted into a movie by Ken Russell, Tommy first played the West End in 1979 and has since enjoyed numerous revivals.

Kerry Michael directs this new version with a fresh approach; showcasing a cast of D/deaf and disabled performers, whilst providing access for visually impaired and D/deaf audiences.

Whilst the story is completely off the wall, the ingenuity in this version’s staging, in addition to a multi-talented cast, breathes new life and soul into a forty-year-old concept. Bold and boisterous, Tommy is an energetic attack on the senses and provides an edgy, accessible and memorable experience worthy of its long-cherished reputation.

11. Mamma Mia! The Musical

Credit: Brinkhoff M+Âgenburg.

As a musical, Mamma Mia has the distinct advantage of showcasing chart-topping numbers by one of the world’s most successful bands.

Irresistibly kitsch, camp and colourful, Mamma Mia fulfils every expectation as a truly uplifting, fun-filled jukebox musical. Each number hits home with a palpable disco drive, accompanied with lustrous choreography and non-stop spectacle.

Losing none of its original energy in this dynamic touring version, Mamma Mia is truly the place to go when you’re feeling down. Take a chance; go see.

10. Lifeboat

A wartime tale of courage and companionship, Lifeboat recounts the true story of Beth and Bess, two teenage evacuees who board The City of Benares liner destined for Canada. When a torpedo strikes their vessel mid-journey, the girls are cast adrift in a ferocious storm with little hope of recovery.

An immersive adventure beset with tragedy, Lifeboat is ultimately an uplifting story which captures the imagination through characterful writing and skillful delivery. Playful and spirited, the play demonstrates the resilience of friendship in the face of adversity and offers universal, timeless appeal in its heartwarming resolution.

9. Pygmalion

Drawing its title from the Greek myth about an artist who falls in love with his own sculpture, Pygmalion has influenced a body of cultural work in the past century, including adaptations such as My Fair Lady, Pretty Woman and more subtle derivations in Doctor Who and Sherlock Holmes.

In a bold re-imagining, director Sam Pritchard drags Pygmalion into an Ikea-furnished 21st Century, with Shaw’s original dialogue intact.

Pygmalion is a play which lives up to its hype and transcends time, due in part to its outstanding source material. Pritchard’s bold version retains the sharpness of Shaw’s writing, with all the bite and contention of cutting-edge theatre. A superbly-realised, progressively directed show, Pygmalion ingeniously retells a story from the past with all the relevant consequences of the present.

8. Cabaret

Will Young as Emcee in Cabaret. Photographer: Keith Pattison.

Set in 1931 Berlin, Cabaret tells the story of a vibrant city in full swing, revelling in unfettered sexual decadence. The political landscape, however, is rapidly darkening with an unimaginable threat from within...

Cabaret is an urgent, indelible musical which is purposefully shocking and peerlessly outrageous. Poignant and defiant in its final, chilling message, this is a must-see musical which has lost none of its fearless, iconic vivacity.

7. Partition

Exploring the impact and shockwave of the partition of India in 1947, this play by Nick Ahad was performed using traditional radio drama techniques with a live audience.

The story centres on a young couple of the present day, Saima and Ranjit, as they prepare for their wedding day in Leeds Town hall. Their love is absolute, however, a history of division exists between their ancestors; a 70-year-old rift between some Sikhs and Muslims, with wounds which remain profoundly raw for their parents. Can a brave new generation overcome the long, dark shadow of India’s partition?

The very best theatre educates as well as entertains and Partition triumphs, proudly, in both categories.

6. Queen of Chapeltown

Elexi Walker as Beverly. Photograph: Anthony Robling.

Set in a smoggy, grey and drizzly mid-century Leeds, a newly-forged community sets out to celebrate its proud heritage through calypso, colour and carnival. However, for that to take flight, they need to overcome social barriers and crown a carnival queen…

An important and urgent story about the origins of a very proud legacy of celebration, Queen of Chapeltown is an engaging, well-distilled study of the politics and pride behind the creation of the West Indian Carnival.

​Uplifting, inspiring and full of vitality, this play proudly telegraphs that anything is possible when people come together with kindness, compassion and understanding.

5. Reasons to be Cheerful

The company of Reasons to be Cheerful. Credit: Graeae Theatre Company & Belgrade Theatre Coventry.

This anarchic musical is a collection of Ian Dury and The Blockheads’ punk-funk hits, featuring a cast of D/deaf and disabled artists.

Reintroducing a new generation to the music of a much-loved and talented agitator, Reasons to Be Cheerful is a relevant and prescient comment on today’s almost fractured society. Concluding with a rogue’s gallery of politics’ finest all-time crooks, accompanied by all-new Blockheads number, it’s hard to resist the urge to get out your seat and stomp your feet in rebellion.

This show is a deliciously vulgar, mischievous, boat-rocking protest of a musical which pays great testament to an unforgettable cultural icon.

4. Pink Sari Revolution

Munir Khairdan and Syreeta Kumar. Credit: Pamela Raith.

When teenage girl Sheelu is believed to have been raped by an eminent politician, Sampat Pal campaigns to have the offender brought to justice. Despite the nature of the abuse, Pal encounters barriers to his conviction at almost every level, including an odd resistance from the victim herself…

A topical analysis on countering the abuse of power, Pink Sari Revolution is a complex and urgent study of human relationships and social responsibilities; prescient theatre which refuses to waver from its focus that an offender’s shame alone, is not near enough justice for the victim.

A remarkable story retold with vivid direction and indelible production values, this is a Technicolour protest offering startling depth in its analysis of an ongoing story, which is far from being concluded.

3. The Graduate

Catherine McCormack as Mrs Robsinon. Photo: Manuel Harlan.

Mention The Graduate and the mind summons up a wealth of Sixties iconography. A satire on stagnant middle-income America, Charles Webb’s novel became a risqué hit as a movie fifty years ago. In 2017, the black comedy returned in a sharp stage adaptation by Terry Johnson.

The Graduate is a gritty, funny satire and it offers some laugh-out-loud moments, but at its core, it’s fundamentally a bleak drama with an ambiguous conclusion. The play offers a bold appraisal on the stagnant West Coast bourgeoisie of the Sixties, damning the insipid redundancy of its snowflake offspring.

Faithful to its period and continuously inventive in its direction, this is a slick and stylish recreation of an iconic movie and succeeds as a theatrical production in its own right. Sexy and sardonic, The Graduate is a boozy cocktail of comic drama punctuated with nail-biting awkwardness.

2. Barber Shop Chronicles

David Webber and Fisayo Akinade. Photo: Marc Brenner.

Set in numerous shops across the globe, including Johannesburg, Lagos and London, Inua Ellams’ compelling play inspects the peculiar confidence between barber and client; a unique relationship where small talk often evolves into grand, geopolitical debate.

​The shops may be spread across different continents, but Ellams explores the threads, frustrations and old fables which recur as men turn up to have a trim and unburden their minds.

Played out through a single act of just over 90 minutes, Barber Shop Chronicles is short, sharp and a cut above your usual theatrical experience. A capsule of strong voices and vibrant identities, presented with an infectious energy, the play is a magnetic study of the unique relationship between client and barber; a safe space for discussion and confession, offering a relationship which is, evidently, much the same the world over.

1. (The Fall of) The Master Builder

(The Fall of) The Master Builder. Credit: Manuel Harlan.

It's Northern England 2017 and architect Halvard Solness receives a prestigious Master Builder award for the design of a shopping centre. With the complex to be officially opened in a few day’s time, Solness is in high spirits until a young woman arrives to reveal a shocking secret from his past...

(The Fall of) The Master Builder is a daring, compelling and unfettered drama which will undoubtedly leave audiences shocked at its brutal conclusion. Disturbing, intense and unwaveringly relevant, this play examines the abuse of power and the wake of devastation it leaves behind.

A play which reaches the darkest depths, it’s a deeply troubling and psychologically chilling theatrical experience.